Carleton University has released revisions to its draft sexual violence prevention policy, the second-to-last step before the contentious document is approved by its board of governors.

Under provincial legislation, universities must have a policy in place by January — the University of Ottawa passed its policy in June —but at Carleton the process has been fraught with controversy, including whether or not the term “rape culture” would appear in the body of the document.

The update, which was circulated among stakeholders Wednesday morning before being posted, was firm on not expanding the use of “rape culture” beyond the definitions section of the document.

“We have more feedback on this term than any other issue,” said vice-president of students and enrolment Suzanne Blanchard in explaining the decision to move away from the term. “It is a very loaded issue.”

However, the update did make five major adjustments:

• modifying the definition of “university community” so the subject of a complaint couldn’t halt the complaints process by severing their relationship with the university;

• clarifying the policy to ensure that its services support and advise survivors of sexual violence to make it “survivor-centric”;

• removing a clause that allowed the university president to make exceptions;

• clarifying the term “public statements.” Under the revision, complainants could seek counsel and speak to friends and family, but no mention is made of speaking out on social media or the mainstream media;

Blanchard said university administrators heard from over 140 people and a number of unions and other groups. The administrators also received an open letter signed by 280 individuals and 45 student associations and societies.

“We’re incredibly happy with the majority of changes,” said Caitlin Salvino, a fourth-year human rights student and one of the co-authors of the open letter. There were some disappointments — the review committee still includes only university administrators, she points out.

There were a number of requests from people in the university community to make it impossible for a respondent to leave the university to avoid a hearing and possible sanctions. Under the revised policy, if a respondent chooses to leave the university, the hearing could continue, academic records could be flagged and sanctions — such as limited access to campus — could be applied if the individual returns to the university, said Blanchard.

The policy also addressed the issue of making public statements about a case. The revision makes it clear it is permitted to speak to friends, family and counsellors. However, there are privacy and legal issues about speaking to the media, or making statements on social media.

“The challenge over public statements is that they can jeopardize the handling of the case,” said Blanchard. “Confidentiality is still important.”

Under the revised policy, a sexual violence and trauma counsellor has been hired. There are now two at the university.

“That’s a great step,” said Dawn Moore, a professor of law and legal studies who has been involved in the process. “But I want to see clear language on prevention. This position is great, but I really want to see more resources.”

Moore is also concerned about a new measure that says the policy applies to activities both on and off-campus, even when the complainant and the respondent are not engaged in university activities. She believes the policy should apply in off-campus university business, such as a lecture or book launch, but it would be problematic if the policy affects relationships off-campus.

There are only two more weeks before the policy goes before the board of governors, so any new changes are unlikely, said Blanchard.

Under the legislation, the policy will be reviewed in three years.

“With every policy, we need to see what works and what doesn’t work,” said Blanchard. “If something isn’t working, we have the option of adjusting our policy.”

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